Brian Keith Hawkins, 44, confessed Tuesday to the killing of Frank Wesley McAlister, 19, who was stabbed to death during a robbery in 1993.
A cold case murder nearly 25 years old may finally be solved after a California man confessed to a TV station and police that he was among those responsible for the killing.
Brian Keith Hawkins, 44, confessed on Tuesday to the killing of Frank Wesley McAlister, 19, who was stabbed to death during a robbery in 1993, Redding police said.
Hawkins first went to the television station in Redding to discuss his actions before going to the police, according to KRCR-TV.
“He refused to answer any questions about the case itself but said he wanted people to know that he had found God, and that is what led him to finally do the right thing and confess,” KRCR-TV said. “We agreed to interview him, on the condition that we would hold the interview until he turned himself in, and law enforcement could corroborate his confession.”
After speaking with reporters, Hawkins went to the Redding Police Department, where cops say he admitted to having a role in McAlister's death.
McAlister was believed to have come into money from a settlement before he was killed.
In May 1993, Hawkins, Shanna Culver and her brother Curtis Culver allegedly lured lured McAlister out to Shingletown under the guise of selling him methamphetamine.
Instead, Hawkins and Curtis Culver, now 45, allegedly stabbed McAlister to death and left his body in the woods, police said.
The two men and Shanna Culver, now 46, then allegedly took McAlister’s money and drove his vehicle back to Redding, where they left it in a Costco parking lot, authorities said.
McAlister was reported missing by his family shortly after he disappeared.
Authorities soon found his car and immediately suspected foul play, as a large amount of blood was found inside.
McAlister’s remains were found one year later by a hiker, cops said.
Investigators in 1993 learned Hawkins and the Culver siblings were the last people to see McAlister alive, but they denied any involvement in his disappearance and said they had no information about his whereabouts, officials said.
"God and Christ and these things that have happened over the course of 25 years have pushed me and pushed me to do the right thing," Hawkins tearfully told KCRC-TV. "I know the wrong can't be changed but this is the closest I can come to doing the right thing … I've been through hell my whole life because of this.”
He said he reached out to McAlister’s family last year to ask for forgiveness and vowed to confess to the crime.
“I'm not running," he said. "I just need someone that cares. I just hope the community can also forgive me."
Hawkins and the Culvers were arrested and charged with the murder of McAlister. They all remain in the Shasta County Jail.
KRCR-TV reported that police said one of the Culvers has also confessed, but declined to specify which one.
Police released images of McAlister on social media, writing: “We wish to thank Frank's family for their patience during our investigation into Frank's murder, which has spanned more than two decades. We sincerely hope that the recent arrest of Frank's alleged murderers will bring some measure of closure to his family.”
Anyone who has any further information about McAlister’s killing is asked to contact the Redding Police Department at 530-225-4200.
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